The U.S. government may drop some of the charges against former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried, according to a court document
Sam Bankman-Fried May Get Some Charges Dropped as Part of Extradition to U.S.
The U.S. government may drop some of the charges against former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried, according to a court document filed on May 29 by the prosecutors in response to a defense motion that sought to dismiss some of the charges.
The defense had argued that four of the charges, which include bribing Chinese officials and violating campaign finance laws, were not part of the original indictment that formed the basis for Bankman-Fried's extradition. They claimed that these charges breached the extradition treaty between the U.S. and The Bahamas and should be dismissed.
The prosecutors countered that the treaty does not bar the U.S. from charging a defendant with additional crimes after extradition, as long as they do not detain, try, or punish him for these crimes without the consent of The Bahamas. They said they are currently seeking a waiver from The Bahamas that would allow them to try Bankman-Fried for three of these charges: conspiracy to commit bank fraud, conspiracy to operate an unlicensed money-transmitting business, and conspiracy to violate the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.
The charge of making illegal campaign contributions was listed in the original indictment that Bankman-Fried agreed to as the basis for his extradition to the U.S., according to the prosecutors. They said this charge does not require a waiver and should not be dismissed. Additionally, they said that it’s The Bahamas, not Bankman-Fried, that is able to challenge any of these charges as a treaty violation. The hearing on the potential dismissal of some charges is scheduled to take place on June 15.
